The federal Check Truncation Act enacted in 2003 (commonly referred to as “Check21”) inaugurated sweeping changes in the handling of paper checks by the banking industry and its customer. According to traditional practices, a paper check passes from the drawer to the payee to the payee's bank, then through clearing channels to the drawee bank and thence after cancellation and payment back to the drawer. Check21, however, facilitates “truncation” of the paper check. That is, a party at or downstream from the payee may withhold the paper check from further handling, and may instead pass an electronic image or a so-called “substitute check” through the banking channels in lieu of the paper check. In short, Check21 allows banks and/or their customers to replace at least some handling of paper checks with electronic transfers of image data and/or other information. Consequently, it is now permitted for a payee to scan a paper check and to submit an image of the check to the payee's bank for further processing and payment and crediting to the payee's account.
Automatic scanning devices have been developed to process batches of checks at the payee's location or at a bank teller's station. The scanning devices scan a check or a batch of checks to generate images thereof and may also include one or more printers to print endorsements, cancellation marks or cancellation strings of characters or the like on the checks. The image data may be communicated from the scanning device to a personal computer or the like, which may forward the image data for further processing, and which may also control the printing performed by the scanning device.
Since checks may no longer leave the payee's hands for deposit, presentment, payment, etc., the possibility arises that the payee may attempt to wrongfully present the check for payment or credit more than once. For example, the payee may use a scanning device to present an image of a check for payment, but may tamper with the scanning device or take other steps to effectively prevent the scanning device from printing on the check or otherwise marking the check. The unmarked check may then again be presented for payment, e.g., by cashing the check at the drawee bank. It would be desirable to take steps to detect, prevent and/or deter wrongdoing of this type.